Pa. Deer Harvest Drops To Lowest Level Since 1987

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Deer hunters in Pennsylvania bagged the lowest number of deer in the commonwealth since 1987, according to state figures.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission says hunters killed an estimated 308,920 deer during the 2009-10 deer season, an 8 percent drop from the season before. The record low was 300,014 deer taken in 1986- 87.

The agency’s chief deer biologist, Chris Rosenberry, declined to speculate on the reason for the low total.

But Stephen Mohr, president of Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania, called the current deer management program “fatally flawed.’’ His group has filed suit accusing the commission of mismanaging the deer population.

Commission officials say they are trying to correct decades of mismanagement allowing too many deer that degraded the state’s forests. An independent review last month cited pluses and minuses but called the program generally “sound.’’